Fresh cut demand at Tesco grows by 10%

It was traditionally the supermarket aisle where shoppers purely bought their fruit and vegetables. But now major changes in the produce area are having a profound effect on not only shopping habits but also the move to reduce food waste.

Instead of just fruit and vegetables Tesco fruit and veg aisles now offer more than 400 fresh, healthy ready meals, snacks and side dishes. These include healthy carb alternatives such as Butternut Fusilli and Leek and Cavolo Bake; side dishes like Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Mushrooms; snacks like Mexican Spiced Bean and Fruit Salsa; and dessert crumble mixes with fruit.

With the growing popularity, Tesco is about to extend its range of prepared vegetable, fruit and salad dishes. Among the new lines about to be launched are mushroom burgers as well as beetroot burgers; potato wedges with katsu dip and crunchy quinoa; and fajita mix with peppers and onions.

In the last two years rising demand for these prepared foods has grown by 10 per cent – the equivalent of an extra 1.5 million items bought by shoppers.

And their popularity is having a great environmental knock-on effect – a number of these dishes and snacks allow growers and producers to utilise all of their crops, such as cauliflower, carrots, swedes, broccoli and butternut, leading to less food waste.

For instance, cauliflowers considered too small to sell on their own are now being used to make cauliflower couscous - a healthier replacement for carbs – amongst other prepared veg dishes. And wonky shaped carrots are now being used to make carrot spaghetti - another healthier alternative to carbs.

According to Tesco, demand has particularly rocketed over the last two years with:

Spiralised vegetables such as courgette or carrot spaghetti – soaring by 40 per cent

Edamame bean salads – growing by more than 100 per cent

Organic prepared salads – up by nearly 90 per cent

Healthy fruit snacks such as melon and mango ‘fingers’ – up 400 percent

Tesco prepared produce buyer Elizabeth Hall said:

“These tempting new fresh fruit and veg foods are not only offering shoppers a far wider choice in healthy, nutritious meals but are also helping tackle food waste through greater crop utilisation.